My background and lens

I am a sociologist, anthropologist, criminologist, and human factors researcher, currently researching empathy and risk perception in safety-critical environments.

My work draws on:

• behavioural and social research

• human factors and systems thinking

• applied practice across health, wellness, leadership, and organizational change

• long-term observation of behavioural patterns across individuals and institutions

Across these contexts, one pattern appears consistently:

Potential is not a motivation problem.
It’s a capacity problem — shaped by emotion, conditioning, and environment.

The personal question beneath the work

This inquiry is not abstract for me.

For years, I lived a life rooted in performance — doing what I was supposed to do, succeeding by external measures, and silencing parts of myself that didn’t fit. I built a life that looked right, but increasingly felt misaligned.

My body carried the cost of that suppression: exhaustion, disconnection, and a persistent sense that something was being held back — not because I lacked ability, but because I had adapted too well to expectations that weren’t mine.

That reckoning didn’t pull me away from my work — it sharpened it.

It made visible what I was already seeing in others: that people often limit their own potential not through lack of effort, but through learned adaptation to conditions that once kept them safe, employed, or accepted.

How this work evolved

I began my career on the front lines — working in women’s shelters, homelessness outreach, and communities shaped by systemic constraint. Later, my work expanded into women’s leadership, organizational change, and health, wellness, and high performing teams supporting people who were informed, motivated, and trying to change their lives.

Alongside this applied work, I spent years learning across disciplines and traditions — from spiritual and contemplative practices to performance and leadership development — including training and mentorship with leaders such as Tony Robbins, Robin Sharma, and Les Brown.

What became clear over time was that insight, motivation, and belief are rarely sufficient on their own. Behaviour is shaped by emotional responses — and those responses are shaped by conditioning and context.

What I focus on now

Today, my work centres on understanding:

• how emotional responses shape behaviour and decision-making

• how conditioning becomes internalized as limits on choice

• why awareness alone rarely changes patterns

• what restores internal capacity under pressure or constraint

This inquiry informs my writing, research, and applied frameworks — including Potential Unlocked, where emotional intelligence is taught as a practical, evidence-based skill, not a personality trait.

Writing and public work

I am the author of Unchained, Relentless, and Unrequited, where I explore the lived experience of suppression, identity, grief, and reclaiming agency.

My work has been featured in outlets including CBC and Elephant Journal, and I speak and teach on emotional intelligence, behaviour, and human potential in applied and organizational settings.

Orientation

Much of my work has centred women — particularly in relation to emotional labour and constrained systems — while my broader focus is increasingly human-centred, examining how capacity and potential are shaped across environments and identities.

This work is not about fixing people.

It’s about understanding the conditions that allow people to remain human — and what becomes possible when those conditions change.

Human potential is shaped where internal capacity meets external constraint.